THE UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS 

PUBLICATION OP 



■'iC,'^ The School op Education. 



A TEACHERS' MANUAL 



FOR THE USE OF 



THE BINET-SIMON SCALE 
OF INTELLIGENCE. 



By RAYMOND A. SCHWEGLER, M. A. 
Associate Professor of Education. 



1914. 



KANSAS STATE PRINTING OFFICE 

W. 0. Austin, State Printer. 

TOPEKA. 1914. 

5 3556 



THE UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS 

PUBLICATION OF 

The School of Education. 



A TEACHERS' MANUAL 



FOR THE USE OF 



THE BINET-SIMON SCALE 
OF INTELLIGENCE. 



By RAYMOND A. SCHWEGLER, M. A. 

Associate Professor of Education. 



1914. 



KANSAS STATp: PRINTING OFFICE. 

W. C. Austin, State Printer. 

TOPEKA. 1914. 

.5 sri.-^e 






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PREFACE. 



The Binet-Simon scale for intelligence testing has now passed 
its first days of hesitant uncertainty. In spite of doubt and 
controversy it has commended itself to a large number of earnest 
students of childhood as altogether the most adequate measuring 
rod of intelligence so far devised. 

That the scale is perfect no one pretends. It is, however, 
noteworthy that those who have used it most extensively are, on 
the whole, its most ardent defenders. That it will in the course 
of time be amended and developed is highly probable. In fact, 
the earnest enthusiasm of the splendid group of workers now 
active in this field, both in America and abroad, gives assurance 
that this development will be both early and sound. 

In the meantime it remains undoubtedly true that the scale 
as at present constituted is our most available and reliable 
guide in distinguishing the normal from both the subnormal and 
the exceptional child, in determining the various degrees of 
natural endowment, and in reaching final judgment in many 
complicated phases of juvenile life. 

The teacher, the parent, the social worker and the juvenile 
court should find in this scale an invaluable instrument for the 
solution of many a complex problem. 

The purpose of this booklet is to make the Binet-Simon scale 
available in popular form to the great army of men and women 
active in public and semi-public positions in the care and con- 
trol of childhood. All controversy has been ignored in the con- 
viction that what is now needed is a practical guide for the wide 
use of these tests. Those whose interests are centered in the 
disputed aspects of the Binet-Simon tests are referred to the 
bibliography at the end of this pamphlet. 

The series as here presented is in the main a duplicate of 
Dr. Henry H. Goddard's version. A few modifications, based in 
part on the experience of the writer, and in part on that of 
other workers in the field of testing, have been made. These 
modifications will be found chiefly in the tests suggested for the 
last two age groups. 

The list of writings which have been consulted in constructing 
this guide is too long to bear detailed repetition here. Three 

(3) 



4 A Teachers' Manual. 

names stand out preeminently: Goddard, Wallin and Meumann. 
Grateful acknowledgment is hereby made to these and all others 
whose work has been of service in making this guide possible. 

The pamphlet is dedicated to the welfare and happiness of 
childhood everywhere. THE AUTHOR. 

July, 1914. 



CONTENTS. 



page 

Preface 3 

I. Historical Sketch of the Binet-Simon Scale.. 7 

II. A Tabular Synopsis of the Scale 8 

III. General Directions for Testing 10 

IV. A Verbatim Guide for the Use of the Scale 12 

V. The Interpretation of the Results 44 

VI. Appendices : 

A. — A simple eye test 47 

B. — A simple ear test 50 

VII. Bibliography 52 

(5) 



Chapter I. 

A Brief Historical Sketch of the Binet-Simon 
Scale of Intelligence Tests. 

In 1904 the minister of education of France resolved upon the 
separation of the normal from the subnormal children in the 
public schools of that nation. He turned to Alfred Binet, who 
had been for many years engaged in the task of developing 
psychological tests, for some system of tests that might be used 
for the task in hand. 

It was in 1905 that Binet, working with Thomas Simon, pro- 
mulgated a set of thirty tests, which were to be effective chiefly 
in the detection of mental subnormality. 

After trying out his first series of tests on some 203 children 
in the schools of Paris, both Binet and Simon came to the con- 
clusion that it would be entirely possible to devise a series of 
tests which would not only be effective in detecting mental de- 
ficiency, but which would also serve as a definite measure of 
relative mental unfoldment. They therefore in 1908 published 
a new scale, containing this time fifty-six tests, arranged in 
groups of varying extent, each group containing a number of 
tasks conceived to involve function-norms for a given age. 
Groups were arranged for each age from three to thirteen. 

In response to much pressure, many suggestions and some 
personal experiences of their own, the authors in 1911 published 
a third scale, being a revision of the second, in which the tests 
were in some cases redistributed, and in others changed entirely. 
Shortly after, Professor Binet died. 

The scale in this final form, and in the main unchanged, lies 
at the basis of the present pamphlet. 

It may be of interest to say that the scale has been widely 
used in almost every country of Europe and in America, and that 
in spite of certain inherent difficulties, which no one has yet 
succeeding in removing, it is commending itself within its own 
limits to the favorable attention of many of the foremost work- 
ers in the field of psychometry both at home and abroad. 

(7) 



A Teachers' Manual. 



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The Binet-Simon Scale. 






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10 A Teachers' Manual. 

Chapter III. 
General Directions for Testing. 

1. The testing must be done in a comfortable, well-lighted 
room that is free from noise and interruptions. 

2. See that the child to be tested is in every way comfortable. 
Headache, earache, toothache and other minor physical ailments, 
if present, as also fatigue, hunger, thirst and other physical 
necessities, will distract the child's attention and nullify th€ 
value of the tests. 

3. Put the child at its ease. Make the testing as informal 
and spontaneous as possible. Embarrassment and fear are fa- 
tal to success. 

4. Encourage the child by look, attitude and word. Make him 
feel that you hope that he will succeed. You are measuring him 
at his best, not tripping him at his worst. 

5. Give the child the benefit of the doubt. If it seems prob- 
able that he might do better with another trial, change your ma- 
terial and repeat the test, except where one trial only is spe- 
cifically allowed. " 

6. If there is any doubt as to the visual and auditory effi- 
ciency of the child, test these functions before proceeding with 
the scale. 

7. Unless the child is thoroughly familiar with the English 
language test him by the use of his mother tongue, if possible. 

8. Watch, note and record every move and utterance which 
the child makes. Many automatic postures and movements are 
symptomatic. Often the manner in which an answer is given is 
of more importance than the content of the reply. 

9. The testing must be done individually. Never test in 
groups, nor in the presence of other persons if it can be avoided. 

10. Make yourself thoroughly familiar with the test and it-s 
conditions before attempting to apply it seriously. 

11. Test extensively both above and below the age passed. 
Wide-range testing will give interesting side-lights on the special 
weaknesses and capacities of the child. 



The Binet-Simon Scale. 11 

12. The following symbols are suggested for use in marking 
the records: 

( + ) The plus sign r= passed. 
( — ) The minus sign = failed. 

(dz) The plus-and-minus sign=:value of answer un- 
certain. 
( ! ) Exclamation mark r= absurd response. 

13. All the material required for the administration of the 
Binet-Simon scale as outlined in this guide may be purchased in 
standard form from C. H. Stoelting & Co., 21 N. Green street, 
Chicago, 111., at a nominal price. 

14. It is suggested for the advantage of those who prefer to 
make their own apparatus, and more especially for the benefit 
of those who wish to reduce the individual tests to 4 x 6 in. card 
form as recommended, that each card ought to be marked on the 
upper right-hand corner with the Roman numeral of the age, 
and the Arabic numeral of the test. Thus: XII: 4 would be test 
4, age XII. In case a given test demands more than one card, 
mark them with letters (a, b, c, etc.) in addition. The use 
of the tests will be greatly simplified by following the sugges- 
tion. Provide a shallow box in which all material needed for 
the administration of the tests may be kept together and ready 
for instant use. 



12 A Teachers' Manual. 



Chapter IV. 

A Verbatim Guide to the Use of the Binet-Simon 

Scale. 

For many reasons it is highly desirable that a standardized 
method be followed in administering the Binet-Simon tests. This 
is especially ti-ue when it is proposed to place the tests into the 
hands of a great body of teachers untrained in the special tech- 
nique of mental testing; for except as a uniform standard be 
followed, there can be no uniformity of testing and therefore no 
uniformity in, nor comparability of, results. 

A guide, containing in compact form verbatim instructions for 
the administration of the Binet-Simon scale is herewith presented, 
in order that teachers and others following it may proceed to the 
task of examining their charges with reasonable confidence in 
the reliability of their results. 

Every effort has been made to remove obscurity in the statement 
of the tests themselves, in the enumeration of the materials re- 
quired for them, in the specifications of the time factor wher- 
ever it was involved, and in the discussion of the accepted 
standards of grading and of such other interesting and important 
factors as seemed to have a bearing on the interpretation or ad- 
ministration of the individual tests. 

Since this guide is intended primarily for teachers of public 
school children, the tests for age I and age II are omitted. 



AGE III. 

Test 1. — Locates Mouth, Eyes and Nose on Request. 

Material. — None required. 

Method. Ask the child: "Where is your mouth?" "Touch your 
nose." "Close your eyes." 

Time. The response should be immediate. Hesitation may be 
due to shyness or embarrassment, or to failure to comprehend the 
question. 

Record: -f- if the parts are all correctly indicated. 

Note. If the child fails, it may be due to the factors named 
above, or to real defect. In any case it ought to put the examiner 
on his guard. Some children are exceedingly slow and uncertain 
in their responses. Note the fact that it occurs. 



The Binet-Simon Scale. 13 

Test 2. — Rejyroduction of Six Syllables. 

Material. A card 4x6 inches on which are written clearly the 
sentences given below, or others of similar length and difficulty. 

Method. "Let me see if you can repeat what I am going to say, 
just as I say it. Now listen carefully: (a) Mama has some 
candy. (6) Don barks when he is glad, (c) Now the sun i-s shin- 
ing," No prompting and no repetition allowed. 

Time. The response should be immediate. Delay makes suc- 
cess difficult and unlikely. 

Record: + if the child repeats verbatim one out of three sen- 
tences. 

A'ote. The quality of enunciation, the vigor of utterance and 
possible motor indications of psychic strain should be noted. 

Test 3. — Reproduction of Two-place Numerals. 

Material Required. A card containing five numbers of two 
nonconsecutive digits each. 

Method. "Please listen carefully, and say these numbers after 
me just as I say them. Ready? Now! First trial, 3, 8; second 
trial, 5, 7; third trial, 9, 2. The two digits should be pronounced 
by the experimenter once slowly, distinctly, without accent, about 
one-half second apart. 

Time. The subject should be required to repeat the number at 
once. 

Record: -j- if one of the two-place numbers is correctly re- 
produced. 

Note. Observe whether the reply is sure or uncertain and 
hesitant, and whether the failures consist of substitution of 
wrong digits, or of transposition, or of absolute inability to re- 
call. 

Test 4. — Enumeration of Pictured Objects. 

Material Required. Three or four pictures of people in fa- 
miliar situations. 

Method. "Here is a picture which I would like to have you 
look at. What are all the different things you see in it?" Chil- 
dren of three usually enumerate objects found in pictures; they 
do yiot describe or interpret. If necessary, urge the child to name 
additional omitted items prominently contained in the picture. 

Time. No absolute time limit can be set for this test. How- 
ever, the facility with which the child reacts may sometimes 
serve as an important diagnostic sign. 

Record: + if the child enumerates or names the major pari 
of the prominent elements contained in the picture. 

Note, if the child reacts easily or with difficulty and em- 
barrassment, and whether he recognizes familiar objects readily 
or only when specially urged. (At age three children enumerate, 
at seven they describe, and at twelve they interpret.) 



14 A Teachers' Manual. 

Test 5. — Knotvled^ge of Family Name. 

Material Required. None. 

Method. "What is your first name?" "And now, what is your 
last name?" The family name is the desired reaction. 

Tiine. Response should be immediate. 

Record: + when the child gives the family name correctly. 

Note. All children of three know their first name, but not all of 
them know their family name. 



AGE IV. 

Test 1. — Knowledge of Own Sex. 

Material Required. None. 

Method. "Which are you, a little boy, or a little girl?" If 
the subject is a boy, use the formula above given; if a girl, re- 
verse the words "boy" and "girl." 

Ti7ne. Response should be immediate. 

Record: + if the child gives its sex correctly. 

Note. Children of three frequently do not know their own 
sex, while at four they always do. 

Test 2. — Recognition of Familiar Objects. 

Material Required. A key, a pocket-knife, and a penny, to be 
shown successively. 

Method. "What is this I am pointing at?" or "What do you 
call this?" 

Time. The reaction should be given at once. 

Record: + if the child names the object correctly. 

Note. Sometimes the child may have difficulty in finding the 
correct word at once, and may then assist itself by interpreta- 
tive actions, shoMdng that it knows the use of the object. Ac- 
cept such response as pass. 

Test 3. — Three Digits Reproduced. 

Material Required. A card, containing five three-place num- 
bers. The numerals must be non-consecutive. 

Method. "Here are some numbers. See if you can say them 
after me just as I say them. First trial, 3, 7, 4; second trial, 2, 9, 
5 ; third trial, 5, 2, 8. The child is expected to reproduce correctly 
three digits after hearing them pronounced once. Pronounce 
the numbers in distinct, clear tones, at the rate of one-half 
second per digit. 

Time. The reproduction should be made at once. 

Record: + if the child succeeds in repeating correctly in 
one trial out of three. 



The Binet-Simon Scale. 15 

Note whether the repetition is quick and certain, or whether 
it is hesitant and uncertain. If the child fails, observe whether 
it shows a tendency to substitute wi-ong numerals, or whether 
memory is blank. 

Test 4. — Comparison of Two Lines. 

Material Required. A white card 4x6 inches. Draw on it 
with ink two heavy parallel lines, one inch apart. Let the lines 
be 2 inches and 2% inches in length respectively. 

Method. Pointing to both of the lines at once, ask the child: 
"Which of these two lines is the longer?" 

Time. The reply must be made at once. 

Record: + if the child points out the desired line without 
hesitation. Hesitation counts as failure. 

Test 5. — Simple Contingencies. 

Material Required. None. 

•Method. "What do you do when you are hungry?" "What do 
you do when you are thirsty?" "What do you do when you are 
cold?" 

Time. The replies should be given with reasonable readiness. 
Cne minute may be allowed for each question. 

Record: -f- if the child answers correctly two out of three 
questions. 

Note. This test is adapted from Terman's suggested modi- 
fication of the Binet-Simon series. The original Binet-Simon 
series has only four tests for age IV. 



AGE V. 

Test 1. — Comparison of Two Weights. 

Material Required. Four weighted blocks of wood, weighing 
respectively 3, 6, 12 and 15 grams each. The blocks must be 
of equal size and of similar appearance. Small tin salve boxes 
loaded with paste white lead to coiTespond to the weights given 
above may be used instead of the blocks of wood. 

Method. Place the 3 and 12-gram weights before the child. 
Then ask: "Which of these two weights is the heavier. These 
weights look alike, but one is heavier than the other." Next try 
the 6 and 15-gram weights in the same manner. The experi- 
menter may show the subject how to lift the weights by holding 
them one at a time between the thumb and index finger, and 
lifting them about one-half inch. Give three trials. 

Record: + if the child judges correctly in two out of three 
trials. 

Note the character of errors which appear. The com- 
prehension of what is wanted seems to be much more difficult 
than the actual discrimination of the weights. The experimenter 



16 



A Teachers' Manual. 



should make sure that the child knows what is expected of him. 
Goddard found that 94 per cent of normal children passed this 
test at age five. Six per cent failed. 

Test 2. — Copying of a Square. 

Material Required. A card 4x6 inches, bearing a square I'^/z 
inches on a side, drawn with heavy inked lines. (India ink is 
best for this and subsequent drawings.) 

Method. "Here is a drawing which I want you to copy. See 
how well you can do it," The subject must use pen and ink in 
executing the test. 

Time. Should be recorded for future reference. 

Record: + if the subject succeeds in producing a figure that 
preserves fairly a squared appearance, with well marked right 
angles. In the figure below, numbers one, two and three are ac- 
ceptable, while the remaining three are failures. 



D 








5 
FIGURE 



Note. Sixty-nine per cent of normal five-year-old school chil- 
dren examined by Goddard passed this test. 

Test 3. — Repetition of Ten-syllable Sentence. 

Material Required. A card 4x6 inches with three simple 

sentences of ten syllables each, like those below, plainly written. 

Method. "Listen ! I want you to repeat what I am going to 



The BiNET-SiMON Scale. 17 

say, just as I say it. Now: (a) It rained all day long, and 
spoiled our picnic; or (b) John is going to school with his new 
book; or (c) In summer we find plenty of flowers." The ex- 
perimenter should pronounce the sentence once, slowly, and in a 
clear, distinct voice. 

Time. The reproduction should be given without delay. 

Record: + if the child succeeds in repeating verbatim one 
sentence out of three trials. 

Note. Failures are caused by positive failure to recall, by 
omissions, or by substitutions. Observe whether the reproduction 
is accomplished easily and positively, or in a halting, hesitant 
manner. 

Test 4. — Counting of Four Cohis. ' 

Material Required. Four bright pennies. 

Method. The experimenter places the pennies in a row on the^ 
table, one-half inch apart, and near the child: "Do you know 
what these are?" (If the child does not know, inform him.) 
"Now how many of the pennies are there? Count them aloud,, 
and touch each one with your finger as you count." 

Time. The reaction should be given promptly. Delay and 
hesitation are suspicious. 

Record: + if the child counts the four pennies in order, with- 
out omissions or double countings. 

Note. A certain type of defective child tends either to be un- 
able to count at all, or, having learned to count, to use the num- 
bers aimlessly, and without reference to definite concrete objects. 
Goddard found that 88 per cent of normal five-year-old school 
children could pass the test. 

Test 5. — Reconstruction of Rectangle. "Patience." 

Material Required. Two 1-ectangular cards, 2x3 inches, one 
to be cut into two triangles along one of its diagonals. 

Method. Place the uncut card upon the table before the child. 
Then arrange the two triangular pieces nearer to the child as in- 
dicated in the diagram below (fig. 2). "Now push these 
two pieces around, un,til they look like that other card. See 
how quickly you can do it." 

See that neither of the triangles becomes turned over, other- 
wise it is impossible to reconstruct the rectangle. Replace the 
triangles to their original position if it happens, and start over. 
With some children it may be necessary to repeat the instructions, 
and even to suggest moving the triangles about; but the ex- 
perimenter should be careful not to indicate by look or word, 
whether the child is succeeding or failing. 

—■2 



18 



A Teachers' Manual. 





Fig. S 

Time. Record the time required to complete the test, and, also, 
"•he number of starts needed to accomplish success. 

Record: + if the child succeeds in reconstructing the rec- 
tangle. 

Note. Whether the child is eager and alert, or sluggish and 
indolent, whether its actions are deliberate or random and plan- 
less, and whether there are any indications of motor instability. 
Goddard's investigations show that 62 per cent of normal five- 
year-old school children pass the test successfully. 



AGE VI. 

Test 1. — Temporal Orientation. 

Material Required. None. 

Method. Ask the child: *'Is it morning or afternoon now?" 
In alternative questions it has been shown that a certain type of 
child tends always to select the lAst of two alternatives. The 
question should therefore obviously be so arranged as to place 
the erroneous term at the end of the question. In asking the 
question both terms should be equally emphasized. 

Time. The reaction should be immediate. Hesitation and un- 
certainty, however indicated, are suspicious, and should be fol- 
lowed by repeated questioning, until it is certain that the child 
really knows. 

Record: + if it is evident that the child knows. 

Note. Children do not, as a usual thing, succeed in answer- 
ing this question until they are six. Success depends directly 
upon the ability to measure objective experience in terms of 
subjective reactions. Goddard reports 71 per cent of six-year- 
old normal children as succeeding in this test. 



The Binet-Simon Scale. 19 

Test 2. — Definition of Five Familiar Terms. 

Material Required. None. 

Method. "You know what a fork is? Of course you do. Now 
I want you to tell me, just what is a fork?" Proceed in like 
manner with the remaining four terms: table, chair, horse, 
mama, (The following five alternative terms have also been 
suggested: spoon, bed, drum, cow, father.) 

Time. No exact time limit within which the definition must 
be given can be set. The child should be encouraged to try until 
he either succeeds, or shows clearly that the task is beyond him. 

Record: + if the child defines at least three out of five 
terms by stating their use, or the materials or parts of which 
they are composed; e. g., "A chair is to sit on." 

Note. The replies should be recorded verbatim. At six 
years the child defines in terms of use or composition, at nine he 
begins to define in "terms better than use," i. e., by classifying 
Before the age of six most children answer either by silence, 
repetition of the term to be defined, or by some descriptive ges- 
ture. The highest type of logical definition does not appear 
until approximately the twelfth year. Goddard finds that 85 per 
cent of normal six-year-old children pass this test satisfactorily. 

Test 3. — Simple Triple Command Executed. 

Material Required. A key, two convenient chairs, a small 
box on one of the chairs, and an available door. 

Method. "1 want you to do something for me, please. Put 
this key on that chair, then shut (or open) that door, and then 
bring me the box you see over there on that other chair. Re- 
member now: first the key on that chair, then shut the door, 
then bring me the box. You understand? All right, go ahead!" 

Time. The order should be carried out promptly, and without 
further aid or suggestion. 

Record: -\- only if the child carries out the three orders cor- 
rectly. 

Note. Children for the most part can not carry out a compli- 
cated chain of instructions until they reach the age of six. Even 
at that age many children show marked hesitation and striking 
defects of memory and comprehension. Note such if they occur. 
Almost no four-year-old children can pass this test. At six years 
about 78 per cent of normal school children succeed. (Goddard.) 

Test 4. — Knows Right and Left Sides of Own Body. 

Material Required. None. 

Method. "Show me your right hand!" After the child has 
shown the right hand, "Now show me your left ear!" Be sure 
to give no clue by look or gesture that may guide him in his 
choice. 



20 



A Teachers' Manual. 




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FIG. 3 




The Binet-Simon Scale. 21 

Time. The reaction should be prompt, though a quickly cor- 
rected hesitation is not infrequent. 

Record: — if, as is not unusual, the child clearly does not 
know; + if the child at first shows either the wrong hand or 
ear, but quickly corrects itself; + if the child correctly shows 
the desired hand and ear. 

Note. Right-handed children have a natural tendency to show 
the right hand whenever that hand is called for. If the child 
does not know right from left, it will tend therefore for the same 
reason to point to the right ear. With left-handed children the 
reverse will be true A few children, probably with a tendency 
to ambidexterity, in blank uncertainty touch one hand with the 
other in such a way as to leave it uncertain as to which hand 
is meant. Eighty-one per cent of normal six-year-old children 
should pass this test. (Goddard.) 

Test 5. — Esthetic Judgment. 

Material. A set of three pairs of faces drawn in outline. 
(See fig. 3.) 

Method. Show only one pair of faces at a time. "Which of 
these faces is the prettier?" "And now which of these?" etc. 

Time. Judgment normally should be rendered without delay. 

Record: + if the subject gives a correct judgment in all three 
cases. 

Note. At five years of age one-half of all normal children are 
unable to pass this test, while at six Goddard found that about 
78 per cent passed. If the child has difficulty with the test, note 
distinctly whether it is due to inattention or to inability to form 
an esthetic judgment. 



AGE VII. 

Test 1. — Counting Thirteen Coins. 

Material. Thirteen pennies, placed in a row, about one-half 
inch apart. (For purposes of availability they may be cemented 
to a strip of gray cardboard or thin wood.) 

Method. Point to the pennies and say: "You see this row of 
pennies. Count them and tell me how many there are. You 
had better touch each one with your finger, so as to make sure 
not to make any mistake." 

Time. The test should be accomplished quickly. No coin 
must be touched twice, and non6 omitted. 

Record: -f if the subject succeeds in counting all the coins 
correctly; otherwise — . 

Note. A certain type of child passes its fingers erratically 
from coin to coin, without any definite connection between coin, 



22 



A Teachers' Manual. 






FIG. 4 



The Binet-Simon Scale. 23 

contact or numeral. The count is alternately too large and too 
small. If such a child accidentally counts 13, require repetition, 
in order to eliminate chance. About 94 per cent of normal 
seven-year-old children should pass this test. (Goddard.) Two- 
thirds of six-year-old children fail. (Meumann.) 

Test 2. — Description of Pictures. 

Material. A series of pictures showing persons in familiar 
situations, preferably the same pictures used in test 4, age III. 

Method. The experimenter displays one of the pictures, with 
the statement: "I have a picture here, and I want you to tell 
me what you see in it. What is it about?" Insist on complete 
sentences instead of disconnected words or phrases. Two addi- 
tional pictures may be displayed in the same way. 

Time. The normal child of seven will respond without re- 
peated urging or stimulation. The necessity for continued prod- 
ding should lead to the suspicion of lagging interest and atten- 
tion, or of limited comprehension. 

Record: -f if the subject tells what is taking place in the 
pictures, or describes scenes. 

Note. At three the child emmierates objects in the picture; at 
seven he describes actions; after twelve he interprets the picture. 
Seventy-seven per cent of normal seven-year-old children may be 
expected to pass this test. (Goddard.) 

Test 3. — Discovers Defects in Pictures. 

Material. Provide a plate containing four incomplete outline 
drawings of the human face or form. (Fig. 4.) Preferably 
these drawings are cut apart, and mounted singly on cards about 
4x6 inches. 

Method. Present the pictures one at a time, with the state- 
ment: "Here is a picture. Look at it carefully. Is there any- 
thing missing in it that ought to be there?" 

Time. A delayed answer, especially if it be preceded by ten- 
tative guesses may be symptomatic of slow, imperfect or defec- 
tive intelligence. 

Record: -|- if the child discovers correctly three out of the 
four defects. 

■Note. Some children find the absence of the body from the 
three profile views of the face more disturbing than the obvious 
defects of the face. Make sure that the child understands ex- 
actly what is wanted. Goddard's figures show that 90 per cent 
of normal seven-year-old children may be expected to pass the 
test. Sixty-six per cent of six-year-old children fail. 



24 



A Teachers' Manual. 



Test 4. — Copying Diamond-shaped Figure. 

Material. A card 4x6 inches on which is drawn in black 
India ink a diamond-shaped parallelogram, about one inch on 
each side. A sheet of paper, pen and ink. 

Method. Display the drawing to the subject. "Here is a figure 
I want you to copy. See how much like this one you can make 
your drawing." The child must use pen and ink. 

TiTTie. Record the time. 

Record: + if the subject succeeds in producing a figure that 
has a reasonable resemblance to the original. (See fig. 5.) The 
first three figures in the cut pass. The last three are failures. 



^ 





A 




Z> 



FIG. 5 

Note. Failure to succeed may be due to defective apprehen- 
sion of the original, to defective motor control, to unfamiliarity 
of pen and ink, or to indolence. It is desirable in case the draw- 
ing has been incorrectly finished to locate the fault, if possible, 
by suitable questions. About 92 per cent of normal seven-year- 
old children should pass this test. 

Test 5. — Recall of Color Names. 

Material. Four small pieces of gray cardboard 2x5 inches. 
One piece each of red, yellow, green and blue paper, 1x3 
inches. The colors must be saturated, but not glossy. Mount one 
of the colored papers on each of the cardboard pieces. 



The Binet-Simon Scale. 25 

Method. Place the colored papers before the subject, touch 
rapidly each of the colors in succession, with the request, "Tell 
me the names of these colors as I touch them." 

Thne, Six seconds should ordinarily be adequate for the com- 
plete reaction. 

Record: + if the subject names all the colors correctly in six 
seconds. 

Note. The test is not a color discrimination test, so much as 
a word association test. Incidentally it may occasionally serve 
to reveal color blindness. Ninety-five per cent of seven-year-old 
children will meet the test successfully. (Goddard.) 



AGE VIII. 

Test 1. — Comparison of Subjective Images. 

Material. None required. 

Method. The aim of the test is to discover the child's ability 
to point out like and unlike parts of the memory images it has 
gained by experience. To this end three pairs of words are used, 
as follows: "Are cloth and paper the same?" No? Well what 
is the difference between them?" Use, in turn, two other pairs; 
e.g., (a) wood and glass; (6) knife and fork; (c) window and 
door. It may occasionally be necessary to expand the questions 
above suggested, until the child catches the idea. 

Time. Two minutes are allowed. 

Record: -f- if two pairs out of the three are satisfactorily 
compared within the time limit of two minutes. Otherwise the 
test is marked a failure. 

Note. Many children possess only vague images, lacking in 
clear-cut detail; others are unable to marshal their images on 
demand within a reasonable length of time, or in response to 
ordinary stimuli. Both these types of children will fail to pass 
the test. Ninety-seven per cent of eight-year-old children should 
pass the test within the given time limit. 

Test 2. — Reversed Association. 

Material. None required. 

Method. The task proposed is to count from 20 to 1, inverting 
the usual order of counting, and testing the ability of the sub- 
ject to trace a chain of association in reversed order. "You 
know how to count up from 1 to 20, do you not? I want to hear 
you count the other way, down from 20 to 1. This way, 20, 19, 
and so on. Show me how well you can do it." One trial only 
is allowed, and there must be no prompting. 

Time. Twenty seconds are allowed for the test. 



26 A Teachers' Manual. 

Record: + if the subject succeeds in counting from 20 to 1 
within the time limit, with not more than one error or omission 
or transposition. 

Note. Ninety-nine per cent of eight-year-old school children 
succeed in passing this test. 

Test 3. — Days of the Week Named. 

Material. None required. 

Method. "I want you to give me the names of the days of the 
week in the order in which they come. Let us hear them." No 
prompting is allowed, and only one trial may be given. The 
test may be supplemented by the further question: "What. day 
was yesterday?" "What day will the day after to-morrow be?" 
The main Binet-Simon test aims to test training and memory. 
The supplementary questions test association control over 
memory material. 

Time. Ten seconds are allowed for the main test. 

Record: -f only if all the days are named in the right ordei* 
within the time limit. The enumeration may begin with any 
day. 

Note. Ninety-five per cent of normal eight-year-old children 
pass the test. (Goddard.) 

Test 4. — Adding After Counting by Ones and Twos. 

Material. A card, on which are pasted side by side, and in a 
straight line, three 1-cent stamps and three 2-cent stamps. 
(1, 1, 1, 2, 2, 2.) 

Method. Display the card to the child, with the statement: "I 
bought these stamps at the post office. How much did I pay for 
them?" "Count them, and see." (A few children may not know 
the value of the individual stamps. The value of each kind of 
stamp should be explained before giving the test.) 

Time. Ten seconds are allowed for the test. 

Record. + whenever the subject gives the cost price correctly 
within the time limit. 

Note. The method of counting and adding sometimes throws 
interesting side-light on the mental processes of the child under 
examination. Goddard's tables show that 85 per cent of normal 
children at age eight should pass this test. 

Test 5. — Reproduction of Five-place Numbers. 

Material. A card about 4x6 inches, with three five-place num- 
bers like the three below. 

Method. "Here are some numbers that I want you to say after 
me. I want you to repeat them exactly as I say them. Now 
listen: (a) 5, 2, 7, 4, 9; or (6) 2, 8, 5, 7, 3; or (c) 9, 4, 7, 2, 5." 
The numbers must be pronounced 07ice, slowly, distinctly, with- 
out accent, at the rate of one each one-half second. 



The Binet-Simon Scale. 27 

Time. The reaction should be immediate. After thirty seconds 
it will be all but impossible for most children to reproduce the 
five digits correctly. 

Record: + if the subject succeeds in one out of three trials in 
reproducing the five numerals exactly as they were given, without 
omission or transposition. 

A'ote. The test is a difficult one for eight-year-old children. 
Eighty- four per cent succeed in passing it, according to Goddard's 
table. 



AGE IX. 

Test 1. — Making Chawge. (254 — U.) 

Material. Fifteen pennies, five nickels, and three dimes, ar- 
ranged without overlapping on the table, conveniently near the 
subject. In addition the experimenter will need a 25-cent piece. 

Method. Invite the child to play store. "You can be the store- 
keeper. I want four cents' worth of candy. Here is a quarter. 
Please give me my change." Insist that the subject shall not 
only tell how much change is due, but shall actually count it out. 
{If the honesty of the subject is uncertain, experie^ice has shoivn 
that it will he wise to watch the capital.) 

Time. No definite time limit has been agreed upon within 
which the child must succeed in making the change. 

Record: -f if the child both announces the amount of change 
due and actually harids over the correct change. 

Note. At nine years of age all children should be able to do 
this test satisfactorily. Some children, however, have not 
grasped the meaning of relative monetary values, and betray 
their deficiency in this test. Make sure, if possible, whether the 
defect is due to lack of training or to mental defect. 

Test 2. — Definitions Better Than By Use. 

Material. None required. 

Method. The subject is to be led to define series of common 
terms. "What is a spoon?" "How would you define it?" Ask in 
turn for a definition of bed, knife, house, father, or of fork, chair, 
table, horse, mama. A classifying definition is needed to pass. 

Time. No definite time limit has been agreed upon. Children 
differ enormously in the speed with which they succeed in evolv- 
ing definitions for their most commonplace ideas. 

Record: -\- only if subject gives three out of five definitions of 
a type better than by use: e. g, "A table is a piece of household 
furniture," etc. 

Note. At nine years of age, according to the earlier authori- 
ties, all children should pass, though Goddard found that 38 per 
cent failed. The value of this and similar tests, as giving an in- 



28 A Teachers' Manual. 

sight into the deeper workings of the child mind, can hardly be 
overestimated. The skilled observer will note not only the defini- 
tions themselves, but also the by-product expressions which the 
subject evolves. 

Test S.—The Calendar Date. 

Material, None required. 

Method. It is required to secure from the subject a complete 
statement of the calendar date, including the day of the week 
and month, name of month and the year. Begin with the ques- 
tion, "What is the date to-day?" If necessary, extract informa- 
tion as follows: "What day of the week is to-day?" "What day 
of the month?" "What is the name of this month?" "What year 
are we in?" 

Time. There is no agreement as to a time standard. Test 
until the child has shown clearly that he knows or does not know. 

Record: -f provided the subject has given correctly the in- 
formation asked for, except that the day of the month may be 
given incorrectly by as much as three days. 

Note. Children of nine years most often fail on the number of 
the year, a clear indication of the late development of definite 
time consciousness. (Meumann.) Goddard found that 87 per 
cent of his children passed at nine years. 

Test 4. — Recall of the Names of the Months. 

Material. None required. 

Method. "Please give me the names of the months of the year 
in their proper order, as fast as you can." The subject may be- 
gin at any place he chooses, providing he gives the names in 
their proper order. No prompting is allowed. 

Time. Fifteen seconds is allowed for the test. 

Record: -f- if the child gives the entire list within the time 
limit with not more than one error, whether of omission or 
transposition. 

Note. Failure to give the required data may be due to lack 
of training, to poor memory, or to a defective or undeveloped 
temporal sense. If possible it will be of interest and value to 
discover which factor is responsible. About 90 per cent of 
normal nine-year-old school children may be expected to pass 
this test. 

Test 5. — Arrangeynent of Weight Series. 

Material. Provide five wooden cubes or tin salve boxes, loaded 
to weigh respectively 6, 9, 12, 15, and 18 grams. The blocks 
or boxes must be of the same size and appearance, though the 
initial of each weight may be written on each block or box, to 
facilitate use. (The salve boxes may be conveniently of ^-oz. 
size, and may be loaded with paste white lead.) 



The Binet-Simon Scale. 29 

Method. Place the five boxes in irregular order before the 
child, calling attention to their unequal weight. "I want you to 
arrange these five weights in a row so that the lightest one shall 
come first, and then the other four in the order of their weight. 
Lift them this way, with your thumb and first finger. Now, 
which is the lightest?" "Which is the next?" "And now the 
next?" etc., until they have been all adjusted. Record the order 
in which they were placed. Give three trials. Revision is al- 
lowed at any point. 

_ Time. Not more than three minutes are allowed for the three 
trials together. 

Record: -j- if two of the three trials were correct, and if the 
whole operation was done within the time limit of three minutes. 

Note. Eighty per cent should pass the test. When the subject 
has arranged the weights the last time the question, "Are you 
sure you are right?" asked in a surprised manner, will serve as 
a test of suggestibility. The suggestible child will hasten to re- 
adjust the weights. 



AGE X. 

Test 1. — Names Common Pieces of Money. 

Material. One each of the penny, nickel, dime, quarter, half- 
dollar, dollar, and one each of the one- two- and five-dollar bills. 

Method. Place the pieces on the table near the subject. Ar- 
range them in a row, but not in the order of value. "Point to the 
pieces of money one by one, and tell me the name of each one 
as you point to it." 

Time. No specified time allowance has been agreed upon, 
though it is highly desirable that a record of the actual time 
consumed be kept. 

Record: -f- whenever the subject succeeds in naming correctly 
all the pieces of money as he points to them. 

Note. A recent suggestion has been made to drop the five- 
dollar bill from the list of pieces required. The child is to be 
asked to name additional pieces of paper currency up to ten dol- 
lars. Ninety-five per cent of normal ten-year-old children may 
be expected to pass the test. 

Test 2. — Drawing Designs from Memory. 

Material. A card 4x6 inches bearing the designs below (fig. 6) 
in India ink. A blank sheet of paper, pen and ink. 

Method. Place the card before the subject, and allow him to 
study the designs for ten seconds. Then remove the card. "Now 
I want you to copy the two designs from memory." Require the 
child to use pen and ink in making his reproduction. 



30 



A Teachers' Manual. 



■pm- 




FIG. 6 

Ti7ne. No final standard of time has yet been arranged for this 
test. The number and directness of the marks made in repro- 
ducing the figures is probably of greater importance than the 
time required to complete the copy. 

Record: + if the copy is a substantial reproduction of the 
original. 

Note. Binet used this test in another connection, and found a 
high degree of correspondence between it and the intelligence of 
the child being tested. (M^eumann, vol. 2, p. 396.) 

Test 3. — Repeats Six-place Numbers. 

Material. A card 4x6 inches on which are written plainly, in 
black India ink, three six-place numbers. The digits composing 
the numbers must be nonconsecutive. 

Method. Hold the card so that the subject can not see the 
numbers. Then instruct as follows: "I am going to read a num- 
ber, and I want you to repeat it after me just as I read it. Now 
listen." 

First trial: 3, 7, 4, 9, 2, 6. Second trial: 8, 3, 6, 2, 9, 7. Third 
trial: 2, 7, 8, 4, 9, 5. 

Read the number once, clearly, in a distinct voice, without 
accent, at the rate of one-half second per digit. Give three 
trials if necessary to secure one successful reproduction. 

Time. The reproduction should be immediate. Delay means 
failure, because with every second the probability of success be- 
comes smaller. 

Record: + if the subject succeeds in reproducing with ab- 
solute correctness one out of the three trial numbers read to 
him. 

Note. Failures may be due to complete failure of memory, to 
substitution of wrong numerals or to transposition of the right 
ones into wrong places. Each type of failure throws interesting 
side-hghts on the mental type. 

Test 4. — Coftiprehension of Co7icrete Situations. 

Material. None required, though the questions below might, 
for convenience, be written on an index card 4x6 inches. 



The Binet-Simon Scale. 31 

Method. Eight questions representing concrete problems are 
proposed to the subject for solution. Ask the questions slowly 
and distinctly. If necessary, the questions may be repeated once. 

1. "What ought you to do when you miss a train?" 

2. "When a friend accidentally hits you?" 

3. "When you break siomething that belongs to somebody else?" 

4. "When you are on the way to school and find that you are 
going to be late?" 

5. "When you are away from home, and it begins to rain?" 

6. "When you want to buy something, but have n't the money?" 

7. "What should you say when you are asked to give your 
opinion about somebody you don't know very well?" 

8. "Why should we judge a man more by his acts than by 
his words?" 

Write the answers to each of the questions yourself. 

Time. Twenty seconds is allowed for each reply. 

Record: + if five out of the eight questions are answered in 
a definite, intelligent manner. Vague, far-fetched, forced an- 
swers count as failures. 

Note. The eight questions here given are selected from a con- 
siderable number of problems that have been proposed by va- 
rious authors. They seemed the most practical and natural 
questions in the groups examined by the writer. The answering 
in an intelligent way of these questions indicates ability to 
grasp a concrete situation, and to meet it in a practical way — 
one of the most searching tests of mental ability. Goddard 
records 92 per cent successes out of 106 normal ten -year-old 
school children who tried this test. 

Test 5. — Invents Two Sentences with Three Given Words. 

Material. None required. 

Method. "I am going to give you three words, and I want you 
to make two sentences with them. Like this: 'nail, hammer, 
garden.' 'He drove the large nails with his new hammer.' 'Then 
he took the hammer out into the garden to play.' You see I 
used 'nail and hammer' in my first sentence, and 'hammer and 
garden' in my second one. Do you understand what I want you 
to do?" Continue the explanation, if necessary, until the child 
appears to understand what is wanted of him. Then give the 
following three words: ball, boys, river. Keep a written record 
of the sentences produced. 

Time. One minute is allowed for the reaction. Note the exact 
time required for the test. 

Record: + whenever the subject constructs within the one- 
minute time limit two complete intelligent sentences with or 
without a conjunction. 

Note. The character of the sentences produced is of diagnostic 
importance. Bald, matter-of-fact sentences of an indefinite char- 
acter, e. g., "Boys play ball," indicate a simple, immature, low- 
grade intelligence; while definite, precise, circumstantial sen- 



32 A Teachers' Manual. 

tences, e. g., "The boys that live across the street play ball ever^'' 
afternoon," indicate greater spontaneity and mental fertility. 
Most serious of all is the situation in which no intelligible sen- 
tences at all are produced. 



AGE XI. 

Test 1. — Detection of Absurdity . 

Material. None required. 

Method. ''I am going to give you some sentences that have 
nonsense in them. Listen carefully and tell me if you can tell 
me where the nonsense is. Now listen : 

"(a) I asked a boy how many brothers he had, and he told,me: 
'I have three of them, Tom, Ed and myself.' 

"(6) Two band boys were down on the corner, blowing a drum 
and beating a horn with all their might. 

"(c) Yesterday there was a slight blaze down town, but it 
wasn't serious; only half the city was burned. 

"(rf) A man asked a boy where Mr. Smith lived. He said: 
'The first house you come to is a barn, and the next is a hay- 
stack. The next is Mr, Smith's.' 

"(e) A man came to see me, but I was not at home. My friend 
asked him to leave his name. The man said : 'Oh, it is n't neces- 
sary to leave my name. He kn(ows me.' 

"(/) Last Friday two of my friends called on me. In the 
evening all four of us went to the theater." 

Select five of the sentences for the test. Pronounce them 
slowly and distinctly. 

Time. Two minutes are allowed for the entire test. 

Record: -f if the child discovers the absurdity in three out of 
five of the statements within the time limit. Otherwise record 
failure. 

Note. It has seemed wise to the writer to substitute in place 
of the sentences usually employed, others of a less gruesome type. 
The test touches upon the essential essence of the associative 
functions, and for that reason it is to be advised that the time 
for each of the five reactions be taken singly, and that a com- 
plete record of the details of the entire test be made. Goddard, 
using the gruesome sentences which Binet-Simon proposed, 
found 92 per cent of successes. The test as here suggested shows 
about the same ratio. 

Test 2. — Constructs One Sentence vnth Three Given Words. 

Method. Follow the same method as in test 5, age X, except 
that instead of calling for the construction of two sentences out 
of three words we now call for one sentence containing the three 
words. Explain carefully what is wanted. Then, after giving 
the warning signal, give the words, money, tree, country, or 
paper, boy, street. 



The Binet-Simon Scale. 33 

Tiiuc. One minute is allowed for the satisfactory completion 
of the sentence. 

Record: + if the subject makes a simple or complex sentence 
containing the three given words. Two -coordinate clauses con- 
nected by a conjunction is a failure. We want one single major 
idea with or without a modifying clause. The sentence must 
make sense, and be free from absurdity. 

Note. Observe carefully the quality of the sentence produced. 
The suggestion made in connection with test 5, age X, holds in 
connection with this test as well. The Vineland tables show that 
but 73 per cent of normal eleven-year-old school children passed 
the test. 

Test 3. — Gives Sixty Words in Three Minutes. 

Material. None required. 

Method. "I want to see how many different words you can 
think of and say in three minutes. Any kind of words, big or 
little, just as you think of them. One boy gave over 200 
words in the three minutes. See how many you can give." If" 
necessary, illustrate by giving him an illustrative series: dog,, 
cat, fish, river, man, boots, etc. Should the child stop either- 
through indolence, confusion, inhibition or for other reasons be- 
fore the time allowed is up, urge him to continue: "Go ahead! 
You can do better than that!" etc. Make a verbatim record of 
the words given. 

Time. Three minutes are assigned for the test. 

Record: -f- if the child succeeds in producing at least sixty 
different 2vords, exclusive of repetitions, within the time limit. 
Nonsense words do not count. 

Note. It will be interesting to note whether the child gives its 
words in a regular, well-controlled stream or whether the words 
are produced in hurried, congested groups, broken by prolonged 
pauses— a neurotic earmark — and whether the words move in a 
straight line or in circles, repeating with variations a single 
central thought. Neologisms should also be noted, as well as the 
motor by-products accompanying the test. Note further the 
child's attitude toward the test, and the scope of ideas it brings 
to the surface. Ninety-two per cent of Goddard's normal chil- 
dren succeeded. 

Test 4. — Finding Rhymes. 

Material. None required. 

Method. "Do you know what a rhyme is? Well, whenever 
two words have the same rhythm and end sound they are said 
to rhyme. For instance, take cap, lap, map, nap, rap, sap, tap. 
You see they all have the same rhythm and they end in the same 
sound. Now I am going to give you a word and I want you to 

—3 



34 A Teachers' Manual. 

give me, just as fast as you can, three words that rhyme with it. 
Ready?" Use either obey, or spring, or mill. Be sure that 
subject understands just what is wanted of him before beginning 
the test. 

r-ime. Three rhymes in one minute is standard. 

Record: + if three rhymes meeting the specifications are 
furnished within the time limit. 

Note. The test involves not only verbal facility of the child, 
but also its synthetic associative processes, its sense of rhythm, 
and its auditory motor efficiency. Ninety per cent of normal 
children may be expected to succeed in the test. 

Test 5. — Reconstruction of Dissected Sentences. 

Material. Three cards 4x6 inches, each having plainly writ- 
ten or printed on its face a dissected sentence, like those below. 
The ones herewith given are standard as to length and difficulty. 

Method. "I have here the pieces of some sentences which 
have fallen apart. They are all mixed up, and I want you to 
put them together again for me as they should be to make cor- 
rect sense. Here is the first one." Place the card bearing the 
first sentence before the child. Then in like manner display the 
other two cards. The child answers orally. Record the replies. 
The sentences are : 

(a) Hour — for — we — early — at — park — an — started — the. 

( 6 ) To — asked — paper — my — have — teacher — correct — ^the — I. 

( c) A — defends — dog — good — his — bravely — master. 

Time. One minute is allowed for each of the sentences, cor- 
rectly reconstructed. 

Record: + if the child reconstructs at least two out of the 
three sentences within the time limit allowed per sentence. 

Note. The test is a difficult one, involving, as it does, a 
drastic appeal to the synthetic functions of the child's mind. 
Observe carefully how the child works. Goddard found that 
only 80 per cent of his normal eleven-year-old children succeeded. 



AGE XII. 

Test 1. — Reproduction of Seve7i-place Numbers. 

Material. Provide a card 4x6 inches in size, and upon it 
write plainly three seven-place numbers, taking care that the 
digits are not serially related. 

Method. "I have some numbers which I want you to repeat 
after me, just as I say them, without any change whatsoever. 
Now listen carefully! Ready?" First trial.— 2, 7, 9, 3, 8, 5, 1. 
Second trial.— 3, 9, 1, 6, 2, 7, 4. Third trial.— 5, 3, 7, 6, 9, 4, 8. 
The numerals must be pronounced once, clearly, distinctly, with 
no marked accent, at the rate of one each half second. 



The Binet-Simon Scale. 35 

Time. The reaction should be given at once. Delay renders 
success improbable, as the memory after-image is fleeting at 
best. 

Record: + if one of three trials is absolutely successful. 

Note. Errors by omission, absolute failure of recall, tmns- 
position, and substitution of wrong digits should be noted. They 
are characteristic of special mental types. Eighty-four per cent 
of ordinary eleven-year-old school children should succeed m 
passing the test. 

Test 2.— Definitions of Abstract Terms. 

Material. None required. 

Method. "I want you to tell me the meaning of two or three 
words that I know you sometimes use. Tell me in your own 
words just what you mean by them when you use them. t irst: 
charity. Second: justice. Third: goodness. Record the re- 
plies verbatim. 

Time. Allow the child all the time he needs, as long as he is 
evidently searching for a solution. 

Record. Two definitions which contain the essential idea, re- 
gardless of the crudity of language, pass the test. 

Note. The ability to generalize is one of the latest to de- 
velop, and one of the most frequently affected by the {actors 
resulting in arrest. The test is a good one, in spite of the di±- 
ficulties met in interpreting the results. Observe especially 
whether the child's difficulties are due to lack of words, or to 
muddy and undeveloped appreciation of the ideas contained in 
the words. 

Test S.— Repetition of a 26-Syllahle Sentence. 

Material. None required. 

Method. "I am going to pronounce a sentence which I want 
you to repeat just as nearly as you can like I give it to you. 
Ready?" First trial: "Yesterday I passed on the road a huge 
yellow dog with a big basket of meat and sausage in his mouth. 
Pronounce the sentence 07ice, clearly, slowly and distinctly. If 
the subject does not repeat the first sentence correctly give him 
another, and then a third. Three trials are permitted No 
prompting is permitted. Second trial: "Uncle John brought me 
a fine collection of arrows when he came back from his trip 
through South America." Third trial: "Harry had a fine new 
rifle which his grandfather bought for him in New York on his 
birthday last summer." 

Time. The reproduction should be immediate. 

Record: + if one out of the three sentences is reproduced 
with verbatim accuracy. 

Note This test of logical memory is distinctly different from 
test 1 age XII. It brings clearly into the foreground the sub- 



36 A Teachers' Manual. 

ject's ability to carry an idea unchanged either as to size, form, 
or content. Note, therefore, clearly what kind of errors the 
subject commits, as the test has undoubted diagnostic value. It's 
very difficulty makes it valuable. Goddard reports only 42 per 
cent of his twelve-year-old children as succeeding in the test. 

Test 4. — Resists Suggestion. 

Material. Provide six blank index cards 6x8 inches. On the 
first of these cards draw two lines, A and B. Line B is to be 
drawn as a continuation of A, and the interval between the 
two lines should be one-half inch. Let line A be at the left and 
two inches long, while line B is at the right and two and one-half 
inches long. On the second card also draw two lines in the 
same manner, except that the line at the left is two and one-half 
inches, and that at the right is three inches in length. On the 
third card are to be drawn two lines also, again in the same 
manner, save that now the line at the left is three inches in 
length, and that at the right is three and one-half inches. On 
each of the fourth, fifth and sixth cards draw two lines, also in 
the same manner, except that all the lines now are to be three 
and one-half inches long; i. e., each card has two lines three 
and one-half inches long, drawn one-half inch apart, and as a 
continuation of each other. Use India ink and a drawing pen. 
The lines should be heavy and clean-cut. Number the cards 
unostentatiously in the upper right-hand corner from 1 to 6, in 
the order as here described. 

Method. Lay card number one on the table before the subject 
with the question: "Which of these two lines is the longer?" 
When the subject has answered, presumably correctly, present the 
second card so as to cover the first, and again ask: "And which 
of these lines is the longer?" Repeat the procedure with the 
third card, using the same question. Now present card number 
four, changing the question to "And of these?" Take care to give 
no clue, either by gesture, tone or attitude, as to the right answer. 
Finish the test now by presenting in order cards 5 and 6, using 
the same question as with card 4, and using the same caution as 
to unconscious clues. Practice asking the questions in a monotone, 
free from rhetorical accent. The nonsuggestible child will de- 
clare the lines on cards 4 to 6 equal. The suggestible child, 
having three times found the right-hand line longer than the 
left, will tend unconsciously to the presumption that the same 
relationship holds on the remaining cards and will answer ac- 
cordingly. He will declare the left-hand lines to be longer than 
the right-hand ones. 

Time. Try to provoke quick responses, as prolonged study 
diminishes the tendency to yield to suggestion by this device. 
Simpler and better tests for suggestibility would not be diffi- 
cult to devise. For the sake of standardization, however, it is 
pei'haps best to use the one given. 

Record: + if the subject has twice judged correctly as to the 
length of the lines on cards 4 to 6, inclusive; otherwise failure. 



The Binet-Simon Scale. 37 

Note. The factor of suggestibility in a twelve-year-old child 
has a profound bearing on its integrity of will, thought and 
memory. The over-suggestible child is weak and unstable and 
becomes easily the prey of those who prey on the weak. Moral 
irresponsibility usually spells ^'suggestibility." The test is 
highly important, and should be worked out carefully, possibly 
in another form. Binet found that out of thirteen ten-year-old 
children only five succeeded in passing the test. 

Test 5. — Prohlejn of Implied Facts. 

Material. None required. 

Method. It is desired to test the child's ability to draw in- 
ferences. We use two incomplete statements, which he is to fill 
out. Proceed as follows: (a) "A man walking in the forest all 
of a sudden began to run at the top of his speed, until he came 
to a tall tree. He climbed up into it as fast as he could, and 
slid out on one of the branches, just as far as he dared. What 
was the matter?" (Answer: A bear or wild animal was after 
him.) (6) **My neighbor has been having strange visitors. First 
a doctor came to his house, next a lawyer, and just now a minis- 
ter went in. What do you think has happened?" (Answer: 
Your neighbor was sick or dying.) 

Time. No standardized time limit has been devised for this 
test, though it is certainly desirable. 

Record: + when both questions are answered with rational in- 
ferences. 

Note. Ninety-three per cent of normal twelve-year-old chil- 
dren passed the test under Goddard. It should be noted, however, 
that he used another question instead of the first one above. Its 
gruesome, not to say offensive character, however, has led most 
American writers to reject it, and suggest a substitute. 



AGE XV. 

Test 1. — Inter2)retatio7i of Pictures. 

Material. Provide pictures either identical with or similar to 
those used for test 4, age III, and test 2, age VII. 

Method. Place three pictures in succession before the subject, 
and require him to describe or interpret them. The purpose of 
the test is to elicit from the subject a statement of the meaning 
or motive of the individual pictures. Usually the response is in 
the form of some word expressive of a feeling or emotion. 

Tme. No time standard has yet been accepted for the test, 
though the test lends itself well to such standardization. 

Record: + if the subject succeeds in interpreting the motive 
in terms of a phrase or word. All three pictures submitted must 
be interpreted. 

Note. The test has commended itself to practically all serious 
students of the problem of intelligence scales. It essays to test 
primarily the processes of emotional evaluation which come to 
maturity with the dawn of adolescence. 



38 



A Teachers' Manual. 



Test 2. — Reversed Clock Hands Visualized. 

Material. None required. 

Method. "I want you to imagine that you see the face of a 
clock, and that it is 2:56 in the afternoon. Can you imagine that 
you see the hands" "Where is the long hand?" "And where is 
the short one?" "Now imagine that the two hands are reversed, 
that the long hand and the short hand have exchanged places: 
What time would it be?" (Answer: 11:15.) Try 6:20 in the 
same way. (Answer: The hands never normally take that posi- 
tion.) 

Time. No standardized time has been agreed upon for this 
test though the test would lend itself very appropriately to time 
standardization. 

Record: + whenever the subject succeeds in giving the an- 
swers above indicated, without prompting. 

Note. The test is a difficult one and will in all likelihood need 
simplification or restatement. It involves especially the visualiz- 
ing function, and may, for that reason be expected to appeal par- 
ticularly to eye-minded children. Poor visualizers will be un- 
likely to succeed. 



Test 3. — The Diagram Cipher. 

Material. None required. 

Method. Construct the diagrams below in the presence of the 
subject, and while he is giving close attention. Call attention to 
the vertical arrangement of the letters in the first and second 
diagrams, to the counter-clockwise arrangement in the third and 
fourth, and to the letters. A, J, S and W as the first letters of 
each of the diagrams respectively. Emphasize also the presence 
of the dots in the comers of the second and fourth diagrams. 
When once the scheme has been made clear, suggest that in the 
Civil War the soldiers of the South used this diagram for secret 
correspondence, by writing for each letter of their message that 
part of the diagram in which the letter is placed in the key. For 
illustration the word "wasp" would be written N/LIX/L- • Now 
ask the subject to write his own name in the cipher, allowing 
him to use the key. Then, having by this means made it per- 
fectly clear that the child understands the principle of the 
cipher, remove the key, and ask him to write "Caught a spy" in 
this code. After the test proper (Caught a spy) begins, the sub- 



A 


D 


G 


B 


E 


H 


C 


F 


I 



J 


M 


P 


• 


• 


• 


K 


N 


a 


• 


• 


• 


• 


• 




L 





R 





Pig. 



/ 



The Binet-Simon Scale. 39 

ject may not see the key, nor may he make a new one for him- 
self. He must rely entirely on his memory for the key. 

Time. Healy and Fernald, from whom Goddard adopted this 
test, suggest no time standard, either for the test as a whole, or 
for the individual letters. 

Record: + when the subject succeeds in translating the sen- 
tence into the code with not more than one error. Every wrong 
or incomplete symbol counts as an error. 

Note. Children find the test very interesting, and it throws 
interesting side-lights on the child's ability to visualize, to dis- 
sociate, to remember, to attend persistently, and to establish new 
associations. As a learning test it offers much promise, especially 
if the time be rigorously controlled. The author has found no 
twelve-year-olds able to do the test within a reasonable time. 

Test 4. — Logical Association. 

Material. A card, 4x6 inches, on which the following words 
are written: 1, good; 2, outside; 3, quick; 4, tall; 5, big; 6, loud; 
7, white; 8, light; 9, happy; 10, false; 11, like; 12, rich; 13, sick; 
14, glad; 15, thin; 16, empty; 17, war; 18, many; 19, above; 
20, friend. 

Method. "If a dog is not alive, what is he? Dead, of course. 
Well, the word 'dead' is the opposite of the word 'alive.' Now 
what is the opposite of 'good'?" Then present in order the rest 
of the list. If necessary illustrate again, but do not continue the 
illustrations beyond the second word. The subject's failure to 
understand the directions is sufficient evidence that he will be 
unable to pass the test. Keep a verbatim record of the sub- 
ject's replies, or better yet, have him write his own opposites. 

Time. No standard of time has been established. In general, 
the individual reactions should be given in three seconds. It 
would be wise to note the time of each reaction with a stop 
watch. 

Record: + if appropriate reactions are given for at least 17 
out of the 20 words in the list. It may be difficult in all cases to 
say absolutely whether a given reaction is entirely right or 
wrong. In such cases, if the word may be conceivably correct 
in certain limited situations, credit as one-half right, and add 
it into the record accordingly, i. e., 12 words entirely right, and 
8 half right = 12+1 — 16, which would mean that the record 
is a failure, since 17 are required to pass. 

Note. The test indisputably has merit. Observe how the sub- 
iect meets the situation, more especially when confronted with 
the m,ore unusual problems, such as the words war and 
"friend." Some children are entirely silenced, while others, m 
default of the appropriate term offer either a more or less inap- 
propriate one, or propose simple negative terms such as un- 
war," "unfriend," etc. 



40 A Teachers' Manual. 

Test 5. — Ethical Generalization {Termaji). 

Material A card 4x6 inches, upon which has been written 
the fable below. 

Method. "I have a story I want to read to you. I want you 
to listen carefully, because when I am through I want you to tell 
me what you think of it." 

First Fable, 'The Milkmaid and Her Plans."— A milkmaid was 
carrying her pail of milk on her head, and mused thus: "The 
money for this milk will buy 300 eggs. The eggs will produce 
at least 250 chickens. With the money which the chickens will 
bring I will buy a new gown. In this new dress I will go to the 
parties with the young fellows, who will all propose to me. ^But 
I will toss my head, and refuse them, every one." At this 
moment she tossed her head in unison with her thoughts, and 
dashed the pail of milk to the ground, and all her imaginary 
dreams perished in a moment. 

"Now tell me what do you think of the story; what is it 
driving at?" Having secured a reply to the first fable, read the 
second also. 

Terman found that 54 per cent of his fourteen-year-old chil- 
dren passed this fable. 

Second Fable, "The Fox and the Crow."— A crow, having 
stolen a bit of meat, perched in a tree, and held it in her beak. 
A fox, seeing her, wished to secure the meat, and thus addressed 
her: "How handsome you are! And I have heard that the 
beauty of your voice is equal to that of your form and feathers. 
Will you not sing for me, that I may judge if this be true?" 
The crow was so pleased that she opened her mouth to sing and 
dropped the meat, which the fox immediately ate. 

Thirty-nine per cent of Terman's fourteen-year-old children 
passed this fable. 

rime. No definite time limit for the response need be set. 

Record: -f if the subject gives an entirely correct statement 
of the point of one of the fables in a generalized form, e. g., if 
the response is in the form of a bald, concrete moral, the test 
is to be graded as a failure, since the purpose of the test is to 
bring to the surface the subject's ability to generalize moral 
and social relationships. 

Note. Terman and Childs, and also Meumann, assert that 
the test is especially valuable as indicating the ability of the 
subject to discern the motives of actions, to catch the underlying- 
idea of an action, and to reveal the child's social consciousness. 
They contend that it may be possible with this test to discover 
moral abnormalities in children who otherwise appear entirely 
normal. (Neumann, vol. 2, pp. 216-218.) 



The Binet-Simon Scale. 41 



ADULT AGE. 

Test 1. — Interpreting Cut in Twice-folded Paper. 

Material. A number of sheets of paper about six inches 
square, pair of scissors. 

Method. In the presence of the subject take up one of the 
sheets of paper. "I am going to ask you to watch me carefully. 
First I fold this paper once across the middle, into halves. Then 
I fold it again across the middle into quarters. This way. Now 
I am going to cut an equilateral triangle from this corner where 
the folds are. Now, how would this paper look if I were to open 
it. I want you to draw for me on this sheet of paper a diagram 
of what you think this cut sheet would look hke if it were opened 
up like this one. (Demonstrate by opening a similarly folded, 
but uncut sheet.) Do not show the triangle you have cut out. 
No coaching allowed. If there is any likelihood that those who 
have already taken the test have talked to your subject about 
it, vary the test by cutting out an irregular section, or even 
by cutting out two simple sections. 

Time. No time limit has been adopted for this test. 

Record: + if the subject draws an approximately correct dia- 
gram of the result of the cutting. The drawing may deviate m 
the matter of proportions, but the essential idea must be con- 
tained in it. 

Note. The test is undoubtedly difficult, and involves to a large 
degree the function of visualization, and the ability to place 
visualized images in definite relationships purely by psychic 
effort. It is always well to make sure that the subject has not 
done the test before, nor seen it done by others. 

Test 2. — Abstract Terms Co7npared. 

Material. For convenience write on a card 4x6 inches the 
following pairs of abstract terms: Pleasure and honor; evolu- 
tion and revolution; event and advent; poverty and misery; 
pride and pretension. 

Method. Request the subject to point out the essential dif- 
ferences between each of the couplets above indicated. The 
writer requires his subjects to write their replies. The best 
type of reply involves a definition of each of the terms, and an 
emphasis of the essential differences so revealed. 

Time. No definite time limit has been set, though it would 
be valuable to note the time required to solve each couplet. 
Many of the tests in the series involve the two factors of speed 
and accuracy. While these are sometimes inversely related, this 
is by no means always the case, and a brilliantly satisfactory 
solution worked out in a minimum time is certainly indicative 
of a more efficient type of intelligence than the same solution 
worked out laboriously and at the cost of many minutes of 
time. 



42 A Teachers' Manual. 

Record: + when the essential differences between the mem- 
bers of any four couplets are indicated. 

Test 3. — Reproduction of Logical Content. 

Material. None required. 

Method. Explain to the subject that you are about to read a 
selection to him and that you will ask him to tell you the sub- 
stance of what you have read. Urge him to give you close at- 
tention. Read to him, 07ice, slowly, distinctly, and with ex- 
pression the following selection. "One hears very different judg- 
ments on the value of life. Some say it is good, others say it 
is bad. It would be more correct to say that it is mediocre; 
because on the one hand it brings us less happiness than we 
want, while on the other hand the misfortunes which it brings 
are less serious than they might be. It is the mediocrity of life 
that makes it endurable, or still more, that keeps it from being 
positively unjust." 

Time. The reproduction should be given at once. 

Record: -f if the subject succeeds in giving the central 
thought in his own words. 

Note. The test as here given is taken with minor verbal modi- 
fications from Goddard. Note that the emphasis here is placed 
on the recall of logical rather than direct sensoiy material. 

Test 4. — Concrete Ingenuity. 

Material. None required. 

Method. **I have a problem which I want you to solve. A 
farmer was on his way to market. He had with him a bushel 
of corn, a fox and a goose. He came to a river which it was 
necessaiy to cross. There was no bridge and the only boat avail- 
able was so small that he could take only one of his commodities 
across at once. Now if he left goose and fox together, the fox 
would eat the goose. If he left the goose and the com together, 
the goose would consume the com. How did he contrive to get 
his property across without having the fox eat the goose, or 
the goose eat the corn?" Read the problem in a clear, distinct 
tone of voice. If necessary repeat the problem in whole or in 
part. Give no advice. If possible, write or have the subject 
write his solution. 

Time. Record the amount of time consumed in working out 
the solution. 

Record: + if the subject succeeds in working out a plan by 
which the three loads may be safely carried across, e. g. (1) 
Take the goose over; (2) Return empty; (3) Carry the com 
over; (4) Return with the goose; (5) Carry the fox over; (6) 
Return empty; (7) Carry the goose across. 

Note. The test, while in the nature of a puzzle, approximates 
the conditions of a concrete life situation, i. e., given familiarity 
with all the factors, to manipulate them in such a way as to 



The Binet-Simon Scale. 43 

produce novel and worthful results. The writer proposes this 
test in place of the "reversed triangle" test, as being more prac- 
tical, as touching on a phase of function not touched on by any- 
other one of the adult tests, and as being essentially a duplicate 
of Goddard's test for adult age. 

Test 5. — Suggestion of Error. 

Material. On a card 4x6 inches or on a sheet of paper write 
in a plain, bold hand the following sentence: "'The constituton 
is our safeguard against oppression." (Note the misspelling of 
the word "constituton." Be sure to copy it as here given, i. e., 
incorrectly. ) 

Method. Place the card before the subject, and request him 
to "read it carefully, so as to be able to reproduce it." Allow 
thirty seconds for inspection. Now remove the card, and after 
one minute request the subject to write the sentence for you on 
a sheet of paper. "Be sure to write it just as you saw it, mis- 
takes and all. You remember, of course, that there were three 
misspelled words in the sentence as you saw it. Please be sure 
to put them in, because it is a part of the test of the accuracy 
of your memory. If you can not remember just what any of the 
errors were, but do remember in what word they were, mark the 
word with a cross. That will help some. If you remember see- 
ing some of the misspelled words, but can not recall which they 
were state how many you remember seeing." Give no hint by 
look, attitude or tone of the real situation, otherwise the test will 
fail. Train yourself to give the suggestion in all seriousness. 

Time. The subject inspects the sentence thirty seconds. The 
experimenter fills one minute with general directions. The sub- 
ject then proceeds at once to write. 

Record: -f if the subject copies the sentence correctly as it 
actually was, or does not cross more than one word as probably 
containing an error. 

Note. The test as here given is adapted from Meumann's ver- 
sion of a similar experiment performed by Dueck upon students 
from 16 to 20 years of age. The writer's attempts with the test 
as described above have resulted as follows: 12 per cent of 
54 students 18 to 24 years old entirely susceptible; 26 per cent 
of 54 students 18 to 24 years old one-half suggestible; 62 per cent 
•suggestible to a varying but indifferent degree. (Meumann, vol. 2, 
p. 80.) 



44 A Teachers' Manual. 

Chapter V. 
The Interpretation of the Results. 

Mental tests may be arranged to give insight into either the 
maturity or the native endowment of those who are examined. 

By maturity we mean the development of native capacity as 
a whole by growth, training and environment. The term is a 
general one. 

By native endowment we mean the special capacities for func- 
tion with which nature has provided the individual. The term 
is usually used with specific reference to individual aspects of 
mental functioning. 

The Binet-Simon scale is primarily a system of tests for 
establishing the degree of maturity of intelligence. It does not 
pretend to be a complete system of mental tests, because it does 
not test individual intelligence-functions, as such, nor does it con- 
cern itself directly with either the emotional or the volitional 
aspect of the individual character. 

However, although the scale in question is primarily intended 
as a measure of intelligence maturity, yet it may be so used 
as to give valuable insight into the specific endowments of the 
individual child. 

The question of interpretation will therefore be discussed 
from each of these two angles. 

I. The Scale as a Measure of Maturity. 

The thought of the authors of the scale was that the intel- 
lectual ability of children of a given age tended to approach a 
relatively well-marked norm. The individual tests for each age 
were selected on this basis. 

It follows, therefore, that a child may be ranked intellectually 
on the basis of the age-tests which it passes, regardless of its 
physiological, anatomical or chronological age. A child may be 
ten calendar years old, and only six mental years old; i. e., it 
may have only the mental development of a six-year-old child, 
in spite of its ten years of growth and experience. Of course the 
opposite may also be true; that is, the child's mental growth 
may have outstripped its physical development. 

Rule. — To determine the mental age of a child from the 
results of the Binet-Simon testing proceed as follows: (a) Take 



The Binet-Simon Scale. 45 

as age standard the tree for which the child passed all the tests, 
(b) Add to this one additional year for every five higher tests 
which the child passed. 

For example. John Smith, ten years of age, passed all the 
tests in Age VIII, he passed four tests in Age IX, passed two 
tests in Age X, one test in Age XI, and one in Age XII. The 
basic age, that in which he passed all the tests, is eight years. 
He passed in addition 8 higher tests: 8^5 = 1.6. Eight years 
plus 1.6 years = 9.6. John Smith possesses the mental ma- 
turity of a normal child 9.6 years of age, i. e., he is approximately 
normal. 

This method of evaluating the results of the scale has been 
adopted by practically all workers in the field. It is at once the 
simplest, and, considering the general nature of the tests com- 
posing the scale, the most adequate. Stern, of Breslau, sug- 
gests dividing the number of tests that John Smith actually 
passed by the number that he ought to have passed, and using 
the quotient as a coefficient of mental age; e. g., John Smith 
should have passed five tests for every year of his age. He 
actually passed 48. Therefore 48 -f- 50 = .96 is his mental age 
coefficient. The method has met with indifferent success, and is 
not in wide use, in spite of certain advantages. Terman and 
Childs suggest a still different method of working up the tests. 
The reader is referred to their work for a detailed statement of 
their plan. (See the bibliography at the end of this pamphlet.) 

II. The Scale as a Measure of the Specific Elements of 
Mental Functioning. 

Although, as already indicated, the Binet-Simon scale does not 
pretend to be anything more than a measure of mental develop- 
ment, yet a little reflection will show at once that its component 
tests may, if rightly interpreted, give valuable insight into the 
detailed aspects of mental functioning. Meumann has clearly 
pointed out that we have these three distinct types of tests : 
capacity or endowment, maturity or development, and environ- 
ment or training. 

With this analysis of the scale in mind, it becomes fairly pos- 
sible to answer not only the question. Is the child subnormal, 
normal, or precocious? but also, if extra-normal in his develop- 
ment, it becomes feasible to show whether the defect is due to 
training, or to natural endowment, or to atypical development. 

As a general principle, it may be stated that all those tests 



46 A Teachers' Manual. 

which involve the repetition of conventional lists of facts will 
display the quality of training. 

Those tests which involve the repetition of auditoi^y digits or 
sentences, as well as those which involve the various aspects of 
the associative function, of image building, and of suggestibility, 
display at least inferentially the native capacity for specialized 
functions. 

Those tests which are arranged in progressive steps of in- 
creasing difficulty, or which involve the more tardily appearing 
functions, such as generalization, spatial visualization, reason- 
ing, complex comparison and the like, refer directly to the maturu- 
tion of native capacities. 

No sweeping iniles can be laid down here. The experimenter 
is urged to make full notes of each test as it is given. If possible 
dictate observations to an assistant who is free to write, and then, 
after the testing is done, read over carefully these verbatim 
notes. They will reveal on even superficial study a wealth of 
facts concerning the details of the mental life of the subject 
which will go far to answer the question "Why, and in what 
particulars is this child deficient?" 

III. — The Classification of Defective Children. 

By common consent of the workers in the field of mental 
deficiency — • 

The child who lags three years behind his chronological age i.> 
classed as backward. 

The child which shows a mental age of from to 2 years is 
classed as an idiot. 

The child with a mentality of from 3 to 7 is classed as an 
imbecile. 

The child with a mental age of from 7 to 12 years ranks as 
a moron — a term substituted for the earlier word "feeble-minded." 

It should be remembered, however, that in the immature 
child this classification according to mental age holds only for 
the time being. Further development is always possible until 
the age of final crystallization has been reached. 



The Binet-Simon Scale. 47 



Chapter VI. 
Appendix A. 

A SIMPLE METHOD OF EYE TESTING. 

The test described below is intended to reveal the grosser and 
more serious deviations from the refractive norm. It does not 
pretend to any degree of absolute accuracy, and it is given here 
only to enable the examiner to establish the fact that visual de- 
fect exists, and of what sort it is. The defects so discovered 
should in every case be referred to a specialist for further ex- 
amination and relief. 

There are in general five kinds of visual defect : 

1. Amblyopia — a dimness of vision due to deficiency of the 
nervous mechanism involved in seeing. It may be congenital and 
incurable, or a mere by-product of neurotic dissociation. 

2. Asthenopia— 2i weakness of the retinal and other visual 
mechanisms, due to strain or disease. Usually relieved by suit- 
able hygienic measures. 

3. Color-blindness — either of red-green, or blue-yellow, or of 
a mixed type. The defect occurs in about 4 per cent of males, 
and in less than 0.5 per cent of females. It is usually congenital 
and incurable. For a detailed discussion of the theory of, and 
tests for, this interesting deviation see Whipple, Manual of 
Mental and Physical Measurements, 2d ed., vol. 1, pp. 181-193. 

4. Ametropia — a failure of the refractive mechanism of the 
eye to bring the light rays to a sharp focus on the retina. In the 
children to be tested the focal point may lie in front of the 
retina: eye-ball too long— myopia, or nearsightedness; or it may 
lie behind the retina : eye-ball too short — hyperopia, or farsight- 
edness; or the cornea may present irregular convexity, thus 
producing two different focal planes within the eye — astigmatism. 
All three types of refractive error need lenses. They should i}i 
every case be prescribed by a registered optometrist. 

5. Motor Assymetry — a defective coordination of the six 
muscles controlling each eye, with the result that the two eyes 
do not properly point in the same direction at once. This defect 
may be latent — heterophoria, or it may be evident — heterotropla, 
strabismus, or cross-eyes. Mild forms of heterophoria are very 



48 A Teachers' Manual. 

common, but may be neglected. Serious cases of heterophoria, 
and all cases of heterotropia should be given medical attention 
as early as possible. (For a full discussion of terminology and 
tests for heterophoria, see Whipple, op. cit., pp. 175-181.) 

The test herewith described concerns itself only with the three 
major forms of ametropia. 

Material Required. Provide an eye-test chart, such as may 
be secured from any manufacturing optician for about ten cents. 
The Merry Optical Co., of Kansas City, Mo., furnish a very 
convenient folding chart in four sections. Provide also a black 
pasteboard card about 3x4 inches square. 

Method. Fasten the chart to a wall in such a position that 
it shall be well-lighted, though not in direct sunshine. The 
bottom of the chart should be about thirty inches from the floor. 
Measure off twenty fe^t in a line perpendicular to the chart, and 
at this distance place a chair for the subject to be examined. 
When the subject has been seated, let him hold the black paste- 
board card in front of his left eye, while he reads aloud as many 
of the lines of letters on the card as he is able to distinguish. 
Let him begin the reading with the largest letters, and when he 
reaches a line beyond which he is unable to go because of the 
visual limitations of the right eye, note the number under the 
last line read. Now proceed in the same manner with the left 
eye, covering the right eye with the cardboard and reading with 
the left. Again note the number under the last line read. 

At the top of the chart will be found a number of heavy 
black lines radiating from a common center. Cover each eye 
in turn, and ask the subject to tell whether any of the lines 
seem blacker than the rest. Note which, if any, seem darker, 
and whether the lines are seen as unequally black with one or 
both eyes. 

Record. Normally at a distance of twenty feet the subject 
should be able to read the line marked ''20 feet." Visual acuity 
may therefore be scored as a fraction whose numerator is 20, 
the distance the subject is from the chart, and whose denominator 
is the number under the last line read. If the subject at 20 feet 
reads only to the line marked "40 feet" with his right eye, then 
Vis. R. E. = 20/40; that is, the right eye is myopic, or short- 
sighted. If with the left eye he reads to the line marked "15 
feet," then Vis. L. E. = 20/15; that is, the left eye is hyperopic, 
or farsighted. Whenever the value of the fraction is less than I 
myopia is indicated; when the value of the fraction is greater 



The Binet-Simon Scale. 49 

thmi 1 hyperopia is probably present. If either of the eyes re- 
ported any of the divergent lines as blacker than the rest, that 
eye is astigmatic, and the direction of the lines seen grayer than 
the rest indicates the axis of the corneal irregularity. Astigma- 
tism is exceedingly common, and few cases of either myopia or 
hyperopia occur which are not complicated with it. 

Even slight degrees of atnetropia, especially those complicated 
with astigmatism, are likely to lead to serious nervous and physi- 
cal consequences. The afflicted child should always be urged to 
seek competent counsel and treatment. 



50 A Teachers' Manual. 



Appendix B. 

A SIMPLE AUDITORY TEST. 

The test herewith suggested has been widely used, and is de- 
scribed in detail by both Whipple and Pyle. It is only intended 
to test roughly the degree of lessened auditory acuity that may 
exist. It does not test pitch discrimination, nor does it lend it- 
self, at least in the form usually advised, to accurate diagnostic 
work. For a detailed statement of other and more accurate tests 
consult Whipple: Manual of Ment. and Phys. Tests, 2d ed., vol. 
1, pp. 200 to 222; and also Pyle: The Examination of School 
Children, N. Y., Macmillan, 1913, pp. 55 to 68. 

Material Required. An ordinary watch, preferably the one 
which the experimenter habitually carries; a tape measure five 
yards in length or more, and some thumb tacks. 

Method. Remove the subject's watch, if he carries one. 
Fasten the tapeline to a wall with the thumb tacks. At the 
zero end of the tape line place a chair for the subject. Request 
the subject to seat himself, to close his eyes, and to listen for the 
ticking of the watch. The ear to be tested first must be just in 
front of the zero end of the tape. 

Hold the watch in the hollow of your hand in such a manner 
that the palm may serve as a reflector for the sound. Begin- 
ning at a point near the ear that is being tested, where the sub- 
ject hears the ticking distinctly, slowly withdraw the watch 
along the plane of the tape to a point where the ticking is no 
longer heard. Do not ask the subject to listen continuously, but 
with each new position of the watch ask him to declare whether 
he hears or not. Note the distance at which the watch becomes 
inaudible. Then begin again at a point well beyond the hearing 
of the subject, and gradually approach him, until he is certain 
that he again hears the ticking. Note the distance. Repeat three 
times, and take the average of the six measures as the index of 
auditory acuity for the ear tested. Having finished testing one 
ear, change the position of the chair to the other end of the tape 
line, and proceed to test the other ear in the same manner. 

Note. A certain type of child with unstable attention suffers 
from auditory illusions when listening attentively to hear the 
ticking, declaring that it hears, when it is highly improbable 



The Binet-Simon Scale. 51 

that the ticking is audible. To make sure whether the child 
actually hears the watch, remove it silently, covering it in such 
a manner that the child can not possibly hear, and then ask 
again, "Do you hear it?" The question may be repeated until 
it is plain whether the child actually hears, or is guessing. If 
the subject insists under these conditions that he hears the 
watch, he reveals the unreliability of his judgment. 

It becomes clear, therefore, that great care must be taken in 
administering this test, otherwise the results, especially with 
low-grade children who are frequently abnormally suggestible, 
become unreliable and worthless. 

Since watches vary enormously in the strength and quality of 
their ticking, it is well to standardize the watch to be used by 
testing two or three persons known to have normal hearing, and 
to use the same watch in all subsequent testing. 

The same suggestion holds with reference to the room in 
which the testing is to be done, as the reflection of sound from 
walls, floor and ceiling varies with every new position. Needless 
to say, the room should be free from disturbing noises while the 
testing is being done. 



52 A Teachers' Manual. 

Chapter VII. 
Bibliography. 

The literature pertaining to the Binet-Simon tests now in- 
cludes some hundreds of titles, many of which possess high 
scholarly merit. Limitations of space make it impossible to 
list here more than a small number of the more prominent pub- 
lications. A complete annotated bibliography of books and papers 
bearing on the Binet-Simon Scale has just appeared in the Jour- 
nal of Educational Psychology. See below, number 27 (Kohs, 
Samuel C, J. of Educ. Psych. 1914, vol. 5.) 

1. Ayres, L. p., The Binet-Simon Measuring Scale for In- 
telligence: Some Criticisms and Suggestions. Psych, Clinic 
1911; 5:187-196. (A somewhat radical and adverse criticism.) 

2. Bell, J. C, Recent Literature on the Binet Tests. J. of 
Educ. Psych. 1912; 3:101-110. (A comprehensive review.) 

3. Berry, C. S., A Comparison of the Binet Tests of 1908 
and 1911. J. of Educ. Psych. 1912; 3:444-451. 

4. Binet, A., et Simon, Th. Methodes nouvelles pour le diag- 
nostic du niveau intellectuell des anormaux. Annee Psychol. 
1905; 11:191-244. (A scale of 30 tests is here given for the 
first time. In the same volume, pp. 163-190 and 245-336, an ex- 
planation of the entire test conception is given, and the series 
is illustrated and defended.) 

5. Binet, A., et Simon, Th., Le developpement de rintelligence 
chez les enfants. Anee Psychol. 1908; 14:1-94. (The second re- 
vised series, with a searching review of the entire situation. The 
tests extensively applied, and detailed results given.) 

6. Binet, A., et Simon, Th., La mesure du developpement de 
r intelligence chez les jeunes enfants. Bull. Soc. Libre Etude 
Psych, de L'Enfant 1911; 11:187-256. (The 1911 revision 
[Scale III] with detailed instructions for its use.) 

7. Binet, A., et Simon, Th., Nouvelles Recherches sur la 
Mesure du Niveau Intellectuel chez les Enfants d' Ecole. Annee 
Psychol. 1911; 17:145-201. (Binet's last work on this subject. 
The 1911 revision presented in detail.) 

8. Bobertag, O., a. Binet's Arbeiten ueber die intellektuelle 
Entwicklung des Schulkindes. Zeitschr. f. angewand. Psychol. 
1909; 3 :230-259. (A study of Binet's work on intelligence tests.) 

9. Bobertag, O., Kurze Anleitung zur. Ausfuehrung der In- 
telligenzpiniefung nach Binet und Simon. Instit. der Gesell- 
schaft f. experim. Psych. 1913. No. 8. (A German version of 
the scale.) 



The Binet-Simon Scale. 53 

10. Bruner, F. G., Barnes E., and Dearborn, W. F., Report 

of the Committee on Books and Tests Pertaining to the Study 
of Exceptional and Mentally Deficient Children. Proc. N. E. A., 
Denver, 1909; pp. 901-914. (An outline of the tests.) 

11. Cornell, W. S., Health and Medical Inspection of School 
Children. Phila., Davis, 1912. (The scale as used by Goddard.) 

12. De Sanctis, S., Mental Development and the Measure- 
ment of the Level of Intelligence. J. of Educ. Psych. 1911; 
2:498-507. (Commends the scale. Prof. De Sanctis in 1906 put 
out a scale of his own, in competition with the 1905 Binet-Simon 
series.) 

13. Doll, E. A., Mental Tests at the Mental Hygiene Con- 
gress. Training School, 1913; 9:138-139. (Report of a dem- 
onstration of the tests given at the congress.) 

14. Dougherty, M. L., Report on the Binet-Simon Tests Given 
to Four Hundred and Eighty-Three Children in the Public 
Schools at Kansas City, Kansas. J. of Educ. Psych. 1913; 4:338- 
352. (The scale is found useful. Some changes are suggested.) 

15. Freeman, F. N., Tests. Psych. BuU. 1912; 9:215-222. 
(Recent literature analyzed.) 

16. Goddard, Henry H., A Measuring Scale of Intelligence, 
Revised. Training School, 1911; 8:56-62. (The 1911 scale with 
American revisions.) 

17. Goddard, H. H., Four Hundred Feeble-Minded Children 
Classified by the Binet Method. Ped. Sem. 1910; 17:387-397. 

18. Goddard, H. H., Two Thousand Normal Children Meas- 
ured by the Binet Measuring Scale of Intelligence. Proc. N. E. A. 
1911:870-878; and also Ped. Sem. 1911; 18:232-259. (The scale 
demonstrated as reliable.) 

19. Goddard, H. H., The Binet-Simon Tests and the Inex- 
perienced Teacher. Training School, 1913; 10:9-11. (The tests 
are a useful implement in the hands of teachers.) 

20. Goddard, H. H., Standard Method for Giving the Binet 
Tests. Training Schools, 1913; 10:23-30. 

21. Grossmann, M. p. E., The Study of Individual Children. 
Plainfield, N. J., Nat. Soc. for Study and Educ. of Except. 
Childr. 1912. (The pamphlet contains interesting suggestions 
for supplementary testing.) 

22. Huey, E. B., The Present Status of the Binet-Simon 
Scale of Tests for the Measurement of Intelligence. Psych. Bull. 
1912; 9:160-168. (A careful review of literature bearing on 
the tests.) 

23. Huey, E. B., Backward and Feeble-minded Children. 
Bait., Warwick and York, 1912, p. 213. (35 borderland cases 
carefully analyzed. Pp. 189-202, A detailed syllabus of the B.-S. 
scale, the book has a good bibliography.) 



K^ 



54 A Teachers' Manual. 

24. Informal Conference on the Binet-Simon Scale: Some 
Suggestions and Recommendations. J. of Educ. Psych. 1914; 
5:95-100. (A number of the more prominent workers in the 
field of mental testing meet to recommend certain uniform 
standards of procedure.) 

25. Johnston, K. L., M. Binet's Method for the Measure- 
ment of Intelligence. Some Results. J. of Exper. Pedagogy, 
1911; 1:24-31. 

26. KOHS, S. C, The Binet Tests and the Training of Teach- 
ers. Training Bull. 1914; 10:113-117. (Teachers can learn to 
use the B.-S. tests.) 

27. KoHS, S. C, The Binet-Simon Measuring Scale for Intelli- 
gence: An Annotated Bibliography. J. of Educ. Psych. 1914; 
5:215-224, 279-290, 335-346. (An excellent summary of the 
most important literature which has appeared on the subject to 
date, in the major continental and English languages. The list 
includes 254 titles, and covers every phase of the questions in- 
volved.) 

28. KUHLMANN, P., Binet and Simon's System for Measur- 
ing the Intelligence of Children. J. of Psycho-Asthenics, 1911; 
15:79-92. (A translation of the 1908 scale. 1300 children ex- 
amined, and the scale found reliable.) 

29. KuHLMANN, F., A Reply to Dr. L. P. Ayres' Criticism 
of the Binet and Simon System for Measuring the Intelligence 
of Children. J. of Psycho-Asth. 1911; 16:58-67. 

30. KuHLMANN, F., The Present Status of the Binet and 
Simon Tests of the Intelligence of Children. J. of Psycho-Asth. 
1912; 16:113-139. (A review of the work done in mental test- 
ing in Germany, France and America.) 

31. KUHLMANN, F., A Revision of the Binet-Simon System 
for Measuring the Intelligence of Children. Faribault, Minn. 
J. of Psycho-Asth., Monogr. Suppl. No. 1, 1912. Pp. 41. 

32. KUHLMANN, F., The Results of Grading 1300 Feeble- 
minded Children with the Binet-Simon Tests. J. of Educ. Psch. 
1913; 4:261-268. 

33. KuHLMANN, F., Feeble-mindedness. The Psych. Bull. 
1914; 9:193-202. (Critical analysis of many important papers 
of recent date.) 

34. McDonald, A., Bibliography of Exceptional Children 
and Their Education. Wash. U. S. Bur. of Educ. Bull. 1913, 
No. 32. (Valuable material listed.) 

35. Meumann, E., Vorlesungen zur Einfuehruug in die Ex- 
perimentelle Paedagogik. Leipzig, Engelmann, 1913. (Vol. 2, 
pp. 94-299.) (Lecture 10 summarizes in masterly style all that 
has so far been done in the field of intelligence measurement by 
the use of scales. At the end of vol. 2 will be found a parallel 
tabulation of the various proposed systems of inteUigence 
testing.) 



The Binet-Simon Scale. 55 

36. Newmayer, S. W., Medical and Sanitary Inspection of 
Schools. Phila., Lea and Febiger, 1913. (Pp. ^262-295 give a 
statement of the tests now used by Dr. Goddard in his clinic at 
Vineland.) 

37. Otis, M., The Binet Teste Applied to Delinquent Girls. 
Psych. Clinic. 1913; 7:127-134. (Tested nearly 200 girls aged 
from 10 to 20.) 

38. Pyle, W. H., a Suggestion for the Improvement and 
Extension of Mental Tests. J. of Educ. Psych. 1912; 3:95-96. 
(Advises testing not only for maturity, but also for endowment.) 

39. RossoLiMO, G., On the Psychological Profile of Backward 
Children. 1st Russ. Congr. for Exper. Pedag., 1910. (The 
psychodiagnostic method explained. Recommends ten tests for 
each of the major mental functions, and reduces the results to 
profile graph.) 

40. Seashore, C. E., The Binet-Simon Tests. .J. of Educ. 
Psych. 1912; 3:50. 

41. Stern, W., Die Diiferentielle Psychologie, in Ihren 
Methodischen Grundlagen. Leipzig, Barth, 1911. (Chapter 6.) 
(A critical review of the literature of intelligence testing. The 
book contains a remarkable bibliography of 1535 titles, bearing 
on every phase of psychognosis.) 

42. Stern, W., The Psychological Methods of Testing Intelli- 
gence. (Translated from the German by G. M. Whipple., 
Bait., Warwick and York, 1914. Pp. 160) A thoroughly scien- 
tific discussion of the basic principles of the B.-S. scale.) 

43. Strong, A. C, Three Hundred and Fifty White and 
Colored Children Measured by the Binet-Simon Measuring Scale 
of Intelligence : A Comparative Study. Fourth Intern. Congr. 
School Hygiene, Buffalo, 1913. Also Ped. Sem. 1913; 20:485-515. 

44. Terman, L. M,, The Psychological Principles Underlying 
the Binet-Simon Scale and Some Practical Considerations for its 
Correct Use. Fourth Intern. Confer. School Hygiene, Buffalo. 
1913. 

45. Terman, L. M., Suggestions for Revising, Extending and 
Supplementing the Binet Intelligence Tests. Fourth Confer. 
School Hyg., Buffalo, 1913. 

46. Terman, L. M., and Childs, H. G., A Tentative Revision 
and Extension of the Binet-Simon Measuring Scale of Intelli- 
gence. J. of Educ. Psych., 1912; 3:61-74, 133-143, 198-208, 277- 
289. (A valuable contribution, containing many stimulating and 
constructive suggestions.) 

47. Town, C. H. (Trans'r), Binet, A., and Simon, Th., A 
Method of Measuring the Development of the Intelligence of 
Young Children. Lincoln, 111., Courier, 1913. 

48. Wallin, J. E. W., A Practical Guide for the Adminis- 
tration of the Binet-Simon Scale for Measuring Intelligence, 
Psych. Clinic, 1911; 5:217-238. (Prefers the 1908 scale.) 



56 A Teachers' Manual. 

49. Wallin, J. E. W., Experimental Studies of Mental De- 
fectives. Bait., Wa\^wick and York, 1912; p. 155. (A critical 
study of the 1908 scale as applied to epileptics. Chapter 4 con- 
tains an excellent verbatim guide for the use of the scale.) 

50. Whipple, G. M., Manual of Mental and Physical Tests. 
Bait., Warwick and York, 1910. (Pp. 473-517 bear on B.-S. 
scale.) (A new two-volume edition is now in press. The book is 
a storehouse of test results. It should be in the hands of every 
worker who proposes to do any serious work in mental testing.) 

51. Ziehen, Th., Die Prinzipien u. Methoden der Intelligenz- 
pruefung. Berlin, Karger, 1911; p. 94. 



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